Seis nombres is based on six true stories in which the identity of Mexican-American girls are formed by the names they are called. This novel shows us that how we act, and react, to the words of others is important. Teachers, family, friends, and enemies can use words to build us up or tear us down. But do we have to let their labels define us?

Although I have encouraged these young women to tell their own stories, they were not comfortable doing so completely on their own. I felt their stories were too important and too relevant for so many of our students that they needed to be shared (with the encouragement and permission of the girls of course).

Some of the minor details and names have been changed to keep their identities anonymous and to make the novel more comprehensible. The book also has a twist ending that is sure to surprise your students.

Seis nombres has all COLOR illustrations created by an amazing student of mine. 

Unique word count: 360

Total word count: 2540

It is not easy to talk about complex topics in simple language, but this book will open the door to meaningful converstaions about who we are, how we see others, and how our prespective of someone changes the more we learn about an individual's personal history.

Students of Spanish will enjoy how each chapter builds to create a more complete story, little by little challenging the reader to see that even with emerging language skills it is possible to analyze and discuss significant themes like immigration, family, and hope for a better future.

Anne Briotet

author

An excellent conversation starter!

Let's start there: the cover. The cover alone will get your students thinking and making educated guesses. Who doesn't love the open-ended questions posed to students? Teachers can learn so much. And this cover allows for that! What you can do for pre-reading!

Next, the artwork. It's phenomenal; even more so because it's student-created!

Now here's more rationale as to why you should take a look at this book for your classroom (or personal!) library:

John Sifert, with his enormous empathetic heart and author's ability, has taken stories (with permission from all) from his immigrant students' experiences and crafted them into a story that everyone should read.

The name of a person is the first and most personal part of his/her/their identity. Yet too often other names are assigned to people, not of their choosing. This book, in accessible and comprehensible language, allows the reader to better understand what it might be like for those who are given other names, and how that might affect their identities.

Furthermore, each chapter of the book highlights a different theme, such as family, community, friendships, teenaged relationships, and the reasons for migrating to the USA - all of which provide just enough to start rich discussions with students who clamor to participate in meaningful dialogue.

Jennifer Degenhardt

Spanish professor and author